The Australian federal government has unveiled a new defense export strategy aimed at turning Australia into a major defense exporter. The document, unveiled by defense industry minister Christopher Pyne on Monday, sets out the policy and strategy to make Australia one of the top ten global defense
A New Zealand Defence Force aircraft and an Australian Navy frigate joined forces in the Western Indian Ocean to interdict 915 kilos of heroin worth AUD$274 million. A Royal New Zealand Air Force P-3K2 aircraft detected a suspicious vessel on January 23 prompting a boarding and investigation by the
A US Navy aircraft carrier is likely to visit Vietnam in March, in what would be a first since the Vietnam war ended in 1975. This was announced on Thursday by officials from both countries during a two-day visit of US defense secretary Jim Mattis to Vietnam, according to media reports. No specific
US destroyer USS Hopper sailed within 12 miles of the disputed Scarborough Shoal in the South China Sea under what the US Navy refers to as a freedom of navigation operation. Hopper sailed near the China-claimed island on January 17 as part of its Western Pacific deployment. China’s foreign ministry
Royal Australian Navy and Northern Territorry community marked the 75th anniversary of the sinking of HMAS Patricia Cam in World War II. Nine lives were lost when, on 22 January 1943, a Japanese seaplane bombed and sank the auxiliary minesweeper as it sailed from Milingimbi to Elcho Island on a supp
The Philippines Coast Guard has contracted French shipbuilder OCEA for the delivery of four 24-meter patrol boats and one 84-meter offshore patrol vessel, the French company announced on January 8. According to the French shipbuilder, the smaller boats will be based on the company’s FPB 72 MKII desi
US Navy’s amphibious assault ship USS Wasp (LHD 1) arrived in Sasebo, Japan, on January 14, to become the forward-deployed amphibious assault ship in 7th Fleet. USS Wasp, which has undergone significant upgrades to be able to land and launch the US Marine Corp’s F-35B Joint Strike Fighter, completed
The Indonesian Navy commissioned its second SIGMA 10514 guided missile frigate – KRI I Gusti Ngurah Rai – in a ceremony at Benoa Harbor on January 10. The vessel, which received pennant number 332, was delivered to the Indonesian Navy by shipbuilder PT PAL who worked with Dutch shipbuilder Damen und
Royal Navy frigate HMS Sutherland and her crew started a somewhat out-of-the-ordinary deployment on January 9, getting underway from their homeport at HM Naval Base Devonport. What is special about the Type 23 frigate’s deployment is that Sutherland will be the first Royal Navy vessel to operate in
The US State Department has approved the sale of Standard Missile-3 (SM-3) anti-ballistic missiles to the the government of Japan, the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency announced on January 9. Japan’s order is worth an estimated $133.3 million and includes four Standard Missile-3 (SM-3) Block I
The Royal Australian Navy’s Anzac-class frigate HMAS Warramunga aced her third Arabian Sea drug interception in two weeks on January 7, bringing the total value of drugs seized to an estimated value of AU$629 million. The latest operation saw the frigate’s crew seize 111 kilograms of heroin valued a
US Navy amphibious assault ship USS Wasp (LHD 1) on January 6 entered the US 7th Fleet area of operations where it will replace USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD 6) in Sasebo, Japan, as the forward-deployed amphibious assault ship. Wasp departed Norfolk Aug. 30 and is entering the US 7th Fleet after nearly
Construction works on China’s third aircraft carrier started at a Shangai shipyard in 2017, the South China Morning Post reported citing sources. The construction start closely follows the launch of the country’s first domestically built aircraft carrier, the Type 001A Shandong, which took place in
US Navy aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70) and its carrier strike group will be the first to deploy in 2018, getting underway from San Diego on January 5. The strike group’s 6,000 sailors will deploy aboard four ships, including aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70) and the guided-missile
